Pune Police arrest Bhima-Koregaon case accused Anand Teltumbde from Mumbai

Pune Police arrested Bhima-Koregaon case accused Anand Teltumbde, on Saturday, from Mumbai. The arrest happened a day after a court rejected his anticipatory bail application.

Additional sessions judge Kishor Vadane rejected activist Anand Teltumbde's bail plea on Friday after observing that the investigating officer had collected sufficient material against him.

"In my view, there is sufficient material collected by the investigating officer to show the involvement of the present accused in the alleged commission of the offence," the judge had observed.

READ: Koregaon-Bhima Case: Supreme Court Refuses To Quash FIR Against Activist Anand Teltumbde

Earlier in January, the Supreme Court had refused to quash Pune Police's FIR against civil rights activist Anand Teltumbde for his alleged role in the Elgar Parishad-Koregaon Bhima violence and for his alleged Maoist links. The apex court had also refused to interfere with the ongoing investigation in the case.

Prosecutor Ujjwala Pawar had argued that some of the correspondence seized by police revealed that the leaders of the banned CPI (Maoist) comrade Prakash, Milind (Teltumbde), Surendra Gadling, Rona Wilson, Shoma Sen and Anand Teltumbde were in contact with each other.

On December 21, the Bombay High Court dismissed the petition filed by Teltumbde seeking the quashing of the FIR and granted interim protection from arrest for three weeks.

READ: Koregaon Bhima Anniversary: Security Stepped Up As People Pay Tributes At War Memorial

Maharashtra police are investigating a case related to Elgaar Parishad event, which was held in Pune on December 31, 2017, a day before an event to commemorate the 200th anniversary of the Battle of Bhima Koregaon. In the matter, the police alleged that several activists were involved in making defamatory speeches during the event which initiated huge protests and violence on January 1, 2018, at Bhima Koregaon, Pune. 

On the anniversary of Bhima Koregaon on January 1, 2019, thousands of people flocked the 'Jay Stambh' memorial in Pune to pay tributes on the 201st anniversary of the Koregaon Bhima battle amidst heavy police presence.

(With agency inputs)